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In 1798, a young boy who cannot speak, read or write is found living alone in a forest in France. Determined to integrate the child into society, Dr. Itard (François Truffaut) takes him under his wing, gives him a name, and attempts to teach him how to communicate. Based on a true story, François Truffaut’s moving tale of care, education, and connection boasts stunning black-and-white cinematography by Néstor Almendros (The Story of Adele H.) and a touching central performance by the director himself, in his first credited role in a feature film.

LIMITED EDITION BLU-RAY FEATURES

High-Definition digital transfer
Uncompressed mono PCM audio
Archival on-set interview with François Truffaut (1970)
Archival television interview with François Truffaut and author Lucien Malson (1969)
New interview with critic and author Ginette Vincendeau (2025)
Trailer
Newly improved English subtitle translation
Reversible sleeve featuring artwork based on original promotional materials
Limited edition booklet featuring archival writing by Truffaut and new writing by Adam Scovell
Limited edition of 3000 copies, presented in full-height Scanavo packaging with removable OBI strip leaving packaging free of certificates and markings

Released in the UK: 27th January

Guess they’re moving these Truffauts up in the queue before the license expires. I thought maybe they’d even throw the last three into a box to get it out quicker, but guess not!

domino harvey wrote: Sun Nov 13, 2016 5:36 am L’enfant sauvage (1970) More self-consciously stylized than most later Truffaut films, this one first flirts with Robert Flaherty-esque pastorals before turning into an interior procedural. The biggest complaint is that Penn’s the Miracle Worker already told a similar story with a thousand times more urgency and verve and style and craft than Truffaut does here, and the polite, formal structure of this film is too dry for such a fascinating topic. A surface-level look at the complexities of human development.

This film might belong in the "former arthouse titans" thread as a stand-alone work.

In The Squid and the Whale, when Jeff Daniels says his son can't be a "philistine" since "you liked The Wild Child when we saw it," the son shrugs and says "lots of people like that movie." Of course, the scene takes place in 1985.

The most famous prog/psychedelic rock band in Denmark, The Savage Rose, sort of boomer royalty, put out an album called Wild Child in 1973.

Maltic wrote: Wed Oct 08, 2025 11:53 am This film might belong in the "former arthouse titans" thread as a stand-alone work.

In The Squid and the Whale, when Jeff Daniels says his son can't be a "philistine" since "you liked The Wild Child when we saw it," the son shrugs and says "lots of people like that movie." Of course, the scene takes place in 1985.

The most famous prog/psychedelic rock band in Denmark, The Savage Rose, sort of boomer royalty, put out an album called Wild Child in 1973.

Yes, If you take a look a the Truffaut thread, there is a suggestion that a reassessment of his works might suggest a general slide towards obsolescence. Not unfair, but we are coming up on his centennial, and he has been dead for half that, so I think it's hard to judge fairly. I just bought the Doinel box in any case.

As far as Savage Rose, I'd have to guess that they were more influenced by the multitude of "Wild Child" songs from Buddy Holly, The Ventures, Doors, and Lou Reed that have nothing to do with the movie, or actual feral children.

This was a major Truffaut title in the states, if you’ve ever read any 70s film criticism it comes up a lot. Of course Truffaut in general was quite popular and he may have been the only French director to get stateside releases for all his films in the 70s— though Lelouch and Chabrol probably came close

This is the only Truffaut I’ve seen in theaters so it has an overstated place in my heart. I won’t deny that it appears small next to The Miracle Worker and Elephant Man, but third place isn’t so bad.